Bon Appétit Box Newsletter

Get to know our French Artisans – The Anis de Flavigny

The Anis de Flavigny from our Café Gourmand Box is so much more than a simple mint flavored candy. It’s the symbol of French ancient know-how and a demonstration of love. Read on to learn about France’s oldest brand!

What is the story of The Flavigny Abbey?
The Anis de Flavigny originated during the Roman era, when a traveler brought the aniseed to France. From the 8th century until the French Revolution in 1789, the Abbey was inhabited by monks who conceived the idea of covering the seed with sugar. This ancestral savoir-faire has been passed down through generations. After her grandfather and father, Catherine Troubat now runs the family business in the same ivy-covered Benedictine abbey. With 30 other passionate confectioners, she is very proud to create these delicious Abbey gems everyday.

The Troubat family has been in charge of the business for almost 100 years. What is different in a family business?
The best thing about working in a family business is that you don’t report to investors or anyone who believes that making profits is more important than honoring a delicious know-how! Year after year, the Troubat family proves their business is in for the long run. They always pledge to use quality ingredients, respect the tradition and passion. Growing up in a family business gives a unique opportunity to gain an early understanding of the products, the values, and the love for the business and its contributions.

What is the Flavigny family secret to transforming an aniseed into a delicious candy?
The secret of the Anis de Flavigny is pretty simple: a 13 hundred-year-old recipe and the selection of the finest ingredients (anise, cane sugar, and natural essence). In a beautiful copper basin, the confectioners pour warm sugar syrup on the anise seed for 15 days until the sugar-coated seed is a small hard candy no larger than a pea.

What is the difference between the Flavigny candies and those we can find in the supermarkets?
The family-run business uses only the finest ingredients to create their scrumptious delicacies. The different flavors are directly extracted from natural plants and flowers, such as mint or violet. The Anis de Flavigny are only made with this natural extract of edible essential oil and without any GMO’s, artificial preservatives or flavor enhancers.
In France, the Anis de Flavigny is as famous for its taste as for its adorable packaging. On every Anis de Flavigny metal tin has a shepherd and shepherdess illustration, largely inspired from the Abbey’s archives. The legend tells that “sharing a candy with an aniseed held in its heart is a demonstration of love.”

Does the Troubat family have an anecdote to share with us?
Catherine, third Troubat generation of passionate confectioners, tells the story of her first week of production at the family workshop:
“One Morning, everyone woke up and the whole Flavigny village smelled of rose. From the local baker to the old farmer, everyone asked me what did I do to perfume the entire village. I felt so embarrassed and had to admit that I messed up with the quantities of rose essential oil. Indeed, while making candies I put 300 times the recommended amount of scented oil! Even my dad woke up to see what was going on at the workshop. I was only 23 and he told me that it’s from your mistakes that you learn most. In the early hours of that day, everyone in the village was smiling.”

Enjoy these delicious candies with your sweetheart, but just be careful to not try to bite it!

Bon Appétit!

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Lena was born and raised in Paris. She is passionate about traveling and discovering new favorite foods, especially the sweet ones; As a young girl, she would often spend her free time in her parent’s kitchen, baking pastries with her mom. She could die for a homemade, warm and buttery Croissant!